Homes and playing fields flooded

The university playing fields at Aberystwyth were submerged

Villagers living near Aberystwyth are mopping up after their homes were flooded, while nearby university playing fields were also inundated.

Between 15 and 20 properties in Llanbadarn Fawr were hit by flooding and fire crews called in a specialist pumping gear to help.

The University of Wales Aberystwyth playing fields were submerged when the river Rheidol burst its banks.

Twelve flood warnings remain across mid and north Wales after a weekend deluge.

One flood victim, Richard Pugh, of Llanbadarn Fawr, near Aberystwyth, said: "We got up this morning and we could see the water was high and beginning to come in the garage.

"So we cleared the garage floor and we just about saved everything that was on the floor.

Richard Pugh surveys the damage at his Llanbadarn Fawr home

"It hasn't come in the house yet and hopefully they'll pump it away before it gets any worse."

He said he had lost some property but managed to save most of it.

Mr Pugh said flooding had been "pretty bad" 10 years ago, but the latest bout had seen water rise two inches higher and was the worst he had ever seen.

Fire officer Wayne Thomas, who was in charge of the incident, said flooding had steadily got worse in Llanbadarn Fawr as the morning wore on.

The fire service had to call in reinforcements with specialised pumping equipment from Newtown.

The high volume unit, one of four in Wales, is able to pump 8,000 litres (1,759 gallons) of water a minute.

The whole of Wales experienced heavy rain over the weekend.

BBC Wales meteorologist Derek Brockway said 168mm (6.6in) of rain fell at Capel Curig in Snowdonia over the three days from midday Friday to midday on Monday. The average rainfall in the area for January is 270mm (10.6in).